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A Question of Loyalty
My goal Akiko was sitting in a tree, looking at the early morning sky. She felt better than she had earlier. but she still felt so weak. She shook her head. That was the wrong move. The shaking messed up her balance and she fell and hit the ground. "Aw damn!" She groaned, getting up. "So much for my perfect morning." And it was indeed quite a perfect morning. The sun's bright outline could barely be seen coming over the horizon, soon to reveal itself in its true glory. What partial light that came to the sky gave it a regular blue appearance, still influenced by the darkness of the evacuating night. Nature calls acted as a soft alarm for many who were still asleep, readying them for a new day. Of course, for Akiko... She sat up, just in time to see a young-red haired boy, Gohan, walking up to the house. "Hey..wait a minute.." Akiko mumbled. "Aren't you that Spetsnaz kid, Gohan or something." "Yeah." Gohan replied, looking down in surprise. "I'm here to talk to Michiyo. Is she awake?" "I'm not sure." Akiko replied, looking back up at the sky. "Go check. But I don't think she's too happy with your group right now." Gohan sighed. "Understandable." He thought. He walked up to the door and knocked. It was such a coincidence that the woman that probably hated his guts right now had opened the door to reveal both of their faces to each other. She held a rather serene expression, her mouth put in a neutral frown. But, an expert mind could see conflict in those seemingly apathetic eyes, ones having been changed by a treasure lost. "Oh..." Her voice seemed rather formal towards the Spetsnaz member. "It's you." Gohan smiled. "G'morning. Mind if I come in?" "No." She stepped aside, allowing for him to pass through. "You're free to come in. But you'd better not stay too long... Tou-san might not be as forgiving as I am." She reminded, a bit of concern in her voice. "Don't worry." Gohan said. "I just came in case you needed some peace of mind." He said, balancing a coin on his finger. "You're worried about your younger sister I assume?" Michiyo took a seat in one of the solo chairs, closing her eyes and sighing. "How could you tell?" She attempted to bring back a bit of joking sarcasm in her voice, but the dullness of her tone kept it from retaining its humor. Gohan chuckled. "You just seem the type." He sighed. "Well, something that'll make you happy is that the girl is alive. I don't believe Tenko has any immediate plans to kill her. He himself has stated that she is merely back-up in case his plan doesn't go right. If his plan succeeds, he may very well let her go. Though, seeing as it's Tenko that doesn't seem likely." Although this registered as even more of a heart-breaker, Michiyo chose to say nothing, retaining her composure and dignity. She felt the urge to tear up once more, but her pride refused to. Even if the boy in front of her shared a close relationship with her, he was also an enemy, and her stubbornness refused to show weakness to such a person. "Due to my connection with you," He continued as if he had not stopped speaking. "I do intend to keep your sister as safe as is possible with Tenko cutting my head off." Her eyes widened, the serenity gone and replaced by a genuine look of surprise. "...really?" She asked, unable to keep the incredulous tone from her words. "You can do that?" "Tenko keeps her under Fuyuko's watch." Gohan explained. "She and I get on okay, so she won't be too averse to listening to anything I have to say or allowing me to watch the girl from time to time. And Tenko listen (most of the time) to Fuyuko, so I think I can pull this off." "All right..." Michiyo turned her head to the side a bit, though still looking at him from the corner of her slightly lightened eyes. "I can trust you. But I'm holding you to your word. If anything happens to her..." "If anything happens to her, I will take full responsibility." Gohan said seriously. "I'll give her as much protection as I can give. Don't forget we're dealing with demons here. And on that note, the Nine-Tails that resided in your aunt. He's joined us as well." "....I expected that..." Michiyo muttered grimly. "He's too much a malevolent being to be on our side, after all." Gohan sighed. "I should go before they notice my unauthorized absence." "I agree." Gohan walked towards the door. "Let's hope the girl makes it out of this alive." He said as he left. The moment he left Akiko entered. "So what did he want?" She asked, rubbing her eyes. "....nothing important." Michiyo lied. "Alright." Akiko yawned as she took a seat next to her niece. "Do you intend to go back to sleep?" "Yeah..." Michiyo nodded slightly. "I don't want to let this worry me to death, even if it is my sister." "Alright." Akiko said. "I'm going for a walk. I still don't feel too good. Tell Onii-san I went out." "Yeah..." Michiyo muttered, a rather silently desolate look on her face. "I'll be sure to do that." "Thanks." Akiko said smiling. "And don't worry. With Onii-san around, everything'll work out fine." She said, walking out of the building. As she finally walked out of the room, Michiyo tilted her head back and closed her eyes once more. "I hope so, oba..." She muttered. "I really hope so..." Irritating Encounter Akiko walked out into the cool morning air. She felt so empty without the Kyuubi in her gut. It was strange though, that she'd miss a demon. She started to walk until she hit the village center. It was still quite early, so it was difficult to find anyone who was awake. She looked around and saw only one building open. The bar where she had first met Yumi and Okita. She wished Yumi would have taken her up on her offer during they're last encounter. "...you sure you want to do this...kind of a rise move, don't you think?" "Trust me on this!" Two familiar voices sounded from in the alleyway that separated the bar from the next building. The first one was male, young, and had a rather gentle tone to it. However, the second was feminine - voices that she had recognized from her past. But it wasn't family. Akiko smiled. About time she heard sometime to brighten the morning. She walked around the bar and stood near the entrance of the alley. She yawned loudly. "What about the Tenno?" "I really doubt they're seeing us as mortal enemies right now. I'm sure Tenno-sama will be a bit lenient if he finds us here..." Footsteps sounded from the alleyway, getting louder as the two figures stepped closer and closer out. Akiko sighed. She would wait for the people to exit the alleyway. Maybe she'd mug them. They stepped out. It was the two figures she had met right from the bar, the first Spetsnaz she had ever encountered. Okita and Yumi. Akiko's head titled. "What are you two doin' here?" She asked. They both turned their heads towards them, eyes widening at the sight of the familiar enemy. Despite her words to her teammate, Yumi's smile she was giving off was nothing short of hesitant. They hadn't left exactly on good terms, at least in her own opinion. "A...akiko... so nice to see you..." "Wish you meant that." Akiko replied, slightly sourly. "So why ARE you to here?" She turned to Okita. "She drinks this early in the morning?" "Actually, we--" Okita began to say, before his teammate abruptly cut her off. "Nothing, Akiko. We were just visiting here for a minute or so before we head off to Kirigakure to visit a friend of mine." It was a half-lie; they were going to Kirigakure, but for an entirely different reason. "Mind if I tag along?" She asked. "I have nothing to do and a trip would do me some good. I don't feel too good." "I'm sorry, but you can't." "I'll probably follow you anyway." Akiko replied. "Everyone is asleep. I have nothing to do, and you two wander in and just happen to be heading on a trip. I figure I'll follow you." Now getting slightly annoyed, Yumi lowered her head and shook it in refusal. "No, Akiko, you can't follow us!" She insisted, folding her arms across her chest. "The only way I won't tag along is if it's a matter of life and death." Akiko replied stubbornly. "...it is a matter of life and death." Yumi snapped, unable to restrain herself any longer. Akiko sighed. "Finally when I thought I'd found something to do.." She muttered. She turned and shuffled off, heading into the open bar. Yumi frowned, grabbing a surprised Okita's hand. "C'mon, Okita. Let's get out of here before we get hassled again." She insisted, not waiting for an answer as they ran in the direction of the exit. "I still intend to make her mine.." Akiko thought as she sat at the bar. "Barkeep whaddya got for me?" "A boilermaker." The man replied. "Shot of whiskey. Beer back." "Two boilermaker's please." She said. The place was fairly quiet. Only about 8 people in here, three of which seemed to be Shinobi. Akiko sighed. Guess she could try and drown her misery. A New Menace "So, what exactly did we get called for?" "It's something that's been terrorizing Kiragakure, a possible target for another seal." The two partners were walking side-by-side on the dirt path, straight on their way to the village. It was the time of the early night, where the crickets were starting to chirp, and the sky was re-gaining its dark blue color. It was a perfect time to scout out and investigate. It was exactly what the two intended to do. Yumi was explaining. "If any of the seals fail, we need at least one backup place in order to initiate the jutsu properly." She said. "Otherwise, the entire thing will fail, and we'll have to start all over again." Okita frowned in disdain. "Wouldn't want that, indeed!" He said, passing her a glance as he walked. "What's the target?" Following at an even pace behind them was Akiko. She wasn't one to be brushed of easily and she had decided to follow them after drinking. She still had a few fox-like qualities from her time as a Jinchuriki, so she was following after Yumi's scent. "The target is supposed to be a boy, a former prisoner of the deceased Snake Sannin." The girl explained, motioning towards the approaching village. "He's causing trouble by killing many of the people there, which mostly consist of shinobi. There's not going to be enough blood if it keeps up.... at least, if it's actually true." Okita's eyes widened, himself obviously interested. "Ah. So we're supposed to find this boy, right?" "Mhm." Akiko's ears twitched. This sounded like just the outing she needed. "Remember... we don't engage... we just--" Immediately, Yumi stopped in her tracks, her calm look changing by the narrowing of her eyes. She turned her head to look over her shoulder. "Stop, Okita." She said immediately, causing her partner to stop walking as well and look at her. "What is it?" "We're not alone anymore..."